Anti-Trump demonstrators crowd streets parks and plazas across the US organisers say millions came

Philadelphia, Jun 15 (AP) Masses of demonstrators packed into streets, parks and plazas across the US on Saturday to protest President Donald Trump, marching through downtowns and small towns, blaring anti-authoritarian chants mixed with support for protecting democracy and immigrant rights.
    Organisers of the "No Kings" demonstrations said millions had marched in hundreds of events. Governors across the US had urged calm and vowed no tolerance for violence, while some mobilised the National Guard ahead of marchers gathering.
    Confrontations were isolated. But police in Los Angeles, where protests over federal immigration enforcement raids erupted a week earlier and sparked demonstrations across the country, used tear gas and crowd-control munitions to clear out protesters after the formal event ended.
    Huge, boisterous crowds marched, danced, drummed and chanted shoulder-to-shoulder in New York, Denver, Chicago, Austin and Los Angeles, some behind "no kings" banners. Atlanta's 5,000-capacity event quickly reached its limit, with thousands more gathered outside barriers to hear speakers in front of the state Capitol.
    Trump was in Washington for a military parade marking the Army's 250th anniversary that coincides with the president's birthday. About 200 protesters assembled in northwest Washington's Logan Circle and chanted "Trump must go now" before erupting in cheers. A larger-than-life puppet of Trump -- a caricature of the president wearing a crown and sitting on a golden toilet -- was wheeled through the crowd.
    In some places, organisers handed out little American flags while others flew their flags upside down, a sign of distress. Mexican flags, which have become a fixture of the Los Angeles protests against immigration raids, also made an appearance at some demonstrations on Saturday.
    In Culpepper, Virginia, police said one person was struck by an SUV when a 21-year-old driver intentionally accelerated his SUV into the crowd as protesters were leaving a rally. The driver was charged with reckless driving.
    The demonstrations come on the heels of the protests over the federal immigration enforcement raids that began last week and Trump ordering the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles, where protesters blocked a freeway and set cars on fire.
    "Today, across red states and blue, rural towns and major cities, Americans stood in peaceful unity and made it clear: we don't do kings," the No Kings Coalition said in a statement on Saturday afternoon after many events had ended.

    Philadelphia

    Thousands gathered downtown, where organisers handed out small American flags and people carried protest signs saying "fight oligarchy" and "deport the mini-Mussolinis".
    Karen Van Trieste, a 61-year-old nurse who drove up from Maryland, said she grew up in Philadelphia and wanted to be with a large group of people showing her support.
    "I just feel like we need to defend our democracy," she said. She is concerned about the Trump administration's layoffs of staff at the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the fate of immigrant communities and Trump trying to rule by executive order, she said.
    A woman wearing a foam Statue of Liberty crown brought a speaker system and led an anti-Trump sing-along, changing the words "young man" in the song "YMCA" to "con man".
    "I am what the successful American dream looks like," said C C Téllez, an immigrant from Bolivia who attended the protest. "I have enjoyed great success here in the United States, and I have also contributed heavily to my community. And if there was space for me, I think there is a way for everybody else to belong here as well."

    Los Angeles

    Thousands gathered in front of City Hall, waving signs and listening to a Native American drum circle before marching through the streets.
    As protesters passed National Guard troops or US Marines stationed at various buildings, most interactions were friendly, with demonstrators giving fist bumps or posing for selfies. But others chanted "shame" or "go home" at the troops.
    Amid signs reading "They fear us don't back down California" and "We carry dreams not danger", one demonstrator carried a two-foot-tall (60-centimetre) Trump pinata on a stick, with a crown on his head and sombrero hanging off his back. Another hoisted a huge helium-filled orange baby balloon with blond hair styled like Trump's.
    A few blocks from City Hall, protesters gathered in front of the downtown federal detention centre being guarded by a line of Marines and other law enforcement. It was the first time that the Marines, in combat gear and holding rifles, have appeared at a demonstration since they were deployed to the city on Friday with the stated mission of defending federal property.
    Peter Varadi, 54, said he voted for Trump last November for "economic reasons". Now, for the first time in his life, he is protesting, waving a Mexican and US combined flag.
    "I voted for Donald Trump, and now I regret that, because he has taken this fascism to a new level," Varadi said. "It is Latinos now. Who is next? It is gays. Blacks after that. They are coming for everybody."
    Even after the formal event ended, the downtown streets were packed with a jubilant crowd as people danced to salsa music and snacked on hot dogs and ice cream bought from vendors, many of whom are Latino immigrants. But the previously calm demonstration turned confrontational as police on horseback moved into the crowd and struck some people with wood rods and batons as they cleared the street in front of the federal building. (AP) RC

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)